Apples IPOD Lifecycle

In this Assignment, you will practice using critical thinking skills. You will analyze a case by conducting research, defining problems, and making recommendations. Remember to suspend personal bias and judgment while investigating the multiple stages of product strategies, and life cycle management.

? Resources: Chapter 9 of Marketing: Real People, Real Choices

In recent times, a popular consumer electronics company, Apple Inc. has released a high-demand product to the marketplace. The iPod portable MP3 player and iTunes interface allow the user to quickly and easily purchase, download, and listen to music. As with any new product in the marketplace, the Apple Inc. has taken steps to manage this product throughout its marketing life cycle.

? Write a paper analyzing how the company has managed each stage of the product life cycle of the popular MP3 player. Determine which stage of the life cycle the product is in currently. Defend why you feel the product is in the stage you identified.

? Your paper should include the following elements:

o A brief description of the product's objectives and marketing strategies

o An analysis of the Introduction phase of the product

o An overview of how the company has managed or should manage the product through the Growth stage

o A review of how the Maturity stage has impacted or will impact on the product sales, profits, pricing, and marketing communication

o A prediction of the product's decline in the marketplace

? Summarize your paper by answering the following questions: Do you agree or disagree with how each stage has been managed? What alternative approaches to life cycle management would you suggest?

MKT/230 - Introduction to Marketing Course Syllabus Page 14
? Include a recommendation for management of the next applicable stage of the product life cycle.

Attachments

Solution Preview

I enjoyed assisting. The attached will assist in your studies and in the writing of your paper. I am the original author of the attached. The attached addresses all factors in regard to the post and will expand your product life cycle knowledge.

Executive Summary - Apple's Ipod might not be the first MP3 player that has hit the shelves, but it has proven the most successful. MP3 players can be considered a relatively new product generally but in the world of technology, it could be considered outdated.

Overview - The Ipod is an MP3 player, but not just an MP3 player; it has become the world's leading MP3 player ever manufactured. (Smart Inventions 2008) While all MP3 players download music, Apple went another step and programmed their products to only accept downloads from its exclusive download service, ITunes. (Apple 2009)

Ipod's First Stage - The first stage of any product, including the Ipod, is the phase of product development. This is considered a critical stage, as the research pertaining to the product is performed. This process is called New Product Development or NPD. NPD has two parallel paths that bring the idea to fruition; they are idea generation and marketing analysis. These two functions advise the company if this is a product that the consumer truly wants and if so, how can we make it better?

In the 1970s 8-track tapes were very popular. Would it be feasible for a company today to market 8-track tapes and would the ...